In the New York foreign exchange market, expectations grew that the Federal Reserve (Fed) would raise interest rates at its meeting this month following the August US jobs report, and the dollar rose against major currencies such as the yen and the euro. The Labor Department's August jobs report showed nonfarm payrolls increased by 162,000, rebounding from an unexpected decline in July and far exceeding economists' forecast of 56,000. The unemployment rate was 4.1%, unchanged from the previous month, while average hourly wages rose 3.1% year-over-year, a slowdown in growth. The probability of a September rate hike implied by interest rate futures rose to 57%, up from 50% before the jobs report. In late trading, the dollar/yen was up 0.26% at 156.19 yen, and the dollar index was up 0.21% at 99.17. Market attention now turns to inflation indicators due out next week.
Jobs data boosts September rate hike expectations, raising the policy rate.
Rate hike expectations push yields up, lowering bond prices.
